All 75 Collections

This collection of indexed marriage records from England and Wales was recorded by the General Register's Office (GRO). It contains millions of records documenting marriages from 1916 to 2005. Images are only available through 1983.

This database is a collection of Texas marriage indexes covering various years and counties. To see specifically what is included in this database (counties and years covered), please see the bottom of this page. This collection is comprised of indexes created by several agencies - Jordan Dodd of Liahona Research, Hunting For Bears, and the Texas Department of State Health Services. Liahona Research and Hunting For Bears extracted information from records at the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah and/or from records located at county courthouses. The Texas Department of State Health Services (DOSHS) index was created from actual marriage records and begins in 1966 with the statewide registration of marriages. Information contained in these indexes includes:

Note: Since this collection is compiled from a variety of sources not all records will contain the above listed information. Items marked with an "*" are only included with records originating in the Texas DOSHS index.

The marriage date is usually the date of marriage as given in the original entry. However, when no marriage date is given (e.g., the "marriage return" was not provided to the record keeper), the date of the license is used. Some marriages may be listed more than once in this database. This is to provide you with as much information as possible about a marriage. In a few cases, a marriage will be listed twice, but in two different counties. This most often happened when a couple obtained a license in one county, but were actually married in another. Another reason for multiple listings of the same marriage is different compilers or source information.

About Marriage Records in Texas:

Marriage records prior to 1836, if extant, may be in custody of the Roman Catholic church. Beginning with the date of organization, most counties maintain marriage records. These are presently in the jurisdiction of the respective county clerk where the license was issued. Statewide recording of marriages began in January 1966, but certified copies are not available through the state office. Marriages of blacks were frequently recorded in separate volumes.

Members of the Daughters of the American Revolution have compiled many marriage records for Texas. These are available in the DAR Library in Washington, D.C., and on microfilm through the FHL.

Marriage records are great sources for genealogists because they document an individual in a particular place and time as well as provide details about that person's marriage and establish important family relationships.

It is important that you use the information found in this database to locate your ancestor in the records that this index references. Usually more information is available in the records themselves than is found in an index. For example, marriage records sometimes provide the birth dates and places of the bride and groom, their parents' names, their addresses, and witnesses' names, in addition to the information listed in this index.

Finding the Original Marriage Record:

Unfortunately, Liahona Research and Hunting For Bears did not always provide information on the origin of each entry. However, careful researchers who wish to examine the original source will find sufficient information to lead them to that source.

This database is a collection of about 11.7 million individuals who were married in the state of Florida between 1822-1875 and 1927-2001. The index portion of this collection was created by multiple agencies - Ancestry, the Florida Department of Health, and Jordan Dodd of Liahona Research. The following list is a breakdown of the records included in this database and who created the electronic index to each of them.

Indexed by Ancestry (includes images of the records):

Florida State Marriage Index, 1927-1969

Indexed by Florida Department of Health (no images available):

Florida State Marriage Index, 1970-2001

Indexed by Jordan Dodd, Liahona Research (no images available):

Marriages for various counties, 1822-1875 (compiled from various records at county courthouses and/or on microfilm)

Information that may be found in this database includes:

Name of bride and/or groom

Marriage county*

Marriage date (can be just a year, or a month and year, etc.)

Marriage certificate number (only available for data from the Department of Health)

Volume number (only available for data from the Department of Health)

*In a few cases, a marriage will be listed twice, but in two different counties. This most often happened when a couple obtained a license in one county, but were actually married in another county. To provide additional research clues, this collection includes both entries.

Where to Go From Here:

Marriage records are great sources for genealogists because they document an individual in a particular place and time as well as provide details about that person's marriage.

It is important that you use the information found in this database to locate your ancestor in the original records that this index references. Usually more information is available in the records themselves than is found in an index. For example, marriage records sometimes provide the birth dates and places of the bride and groom, their parents' names, their addresses, and witnesses' names, in addition to the information listed in this index.

Copies of marriage records are available through the Florida Department of Health. They maintain marriage records beginning in January 1927. For information about how to obtain a copy, please visit their website: www.doh.state.fl.us. Records of marriages occurring before 1927 must be obtained from the clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the marriage license was issued.

Many of these marriages may also be available on microfilm at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. These microfilms can be loaned out to thousands of local Family History Centers throughout the world.

About Marriage Records in General:

Marriage licenses are the most common marriage records in the United States. They are issued by the appropriate authority prior to the marriage ceremony, and they have come to replace the posting of banns and intentions. Marriage licenses, which grant permission for a marriage to be performed, are returned to civil authorities after the ceremony.

Marriage licenses exist in varying forms. A standard form generally asks for the names of the bride and groom, their residence at the time of application, the date the marriage was performed, the date the license was issued, the place of the marriage, and the name of the person performing the marriage ceremony.

Marriage certificates are given to the couple after the ceremony is completed and are thus usually found among family records. There are exceptions, however. [Some] certificates…are similar to marriage licenses issued in other places.

This database contains a statewide index to over 4.8 million marriages that were performed in California between 1960 and 1985. Information that may be found in this database includes: bride’s and groom’s names, bride’s and groom’s ages, marriage county, and marriage date. Each entry is also linked to an index image. On this image additional information such as the registrar number and state file number, may also be listed. The information found in this database can be used to locate the original record that this index references. This is important to do because generally more information is available on the original record. For example, marriage records may list the bride’s and groom’s birthplaces, and their parents’ names and birthplaces, in addition to the information provided in this index. Marriage records can be obtained from the State of California Department of Health Services.

This database contains an index to marriages for Clark County, Nevada (including Las Vegas) from 1956-1966 (with a few marriages from earlier and later years). The database also contains a statewide index to marriages from 1966-2005. Information available in this database includes: Names of bride and groom, Marriage date, City or county of marriage, Officiant*, Date marriage was recorded*, City or county of recording*, and County book and page number. (*Only available in the statewide index for 1966-2005.) Note that all of the information listed may not be available for every marriage. Records from Clark County for 1956-1966 also contain an image. The Office of Vital Records and Statistics has marriage and divorce records after 1969. Prior to that date, marriage records are located in the county recorder’s office where the license was originally obtained.

The more than 3 million marriages that took place in Ohio between 1970 and 2007 are contained in this database. Unfortunately, the information in this database doesn’t include marriages during 1971 because it wasn’t available from the Ohio Office of Vital Statistics. This index isn’t a database of marriage certificates. It contains abstracts that were created with limited information for filing purposes. The abstracts can be used to find the actual marriage certificates in the individual county probate courts that issued the marriage certificate in Ohio. The recent nature of these records provide a chance to flesh out more recent family history over the recent past as well as from 40 years ago. The index is searchable for: Name of bride/groom Birth year of bride/groom County of residence County of license Marriage date Search tip The original index created by the Ohio Department of Health, in some cases, limits the length of a given name to seven characters. Names such as Christian, Elizabeth, Katherine, etc. that are more than seven characters in length may need to be truncated to produce search results. If desired search results are not appearing, please try searching in the given name field using seven letters or less.

This database contains both images of and indexes extracted from various records of marriages in Washington.

What You May Find in the Records

Marriage records can offer a wide range of details. While the indexes in this database may provide the basic facts surrounding a wedding—bride, groom, date, and place—images of marriage certificates may also include additional information such as

addresses

ages

race

birthplaces

occupations

marital status (single, divorced)

whether a first marriage

fathers’ names and birthplaces

mothers’ names, maiden names, and birthplaces

This database does not contain an image for every document included in the index.

This collection of Arkansas marriage records from 1837-1957 comes from records kept by Arkansas Courts of Common Pleas and county clerks. Information, when available, includes the bride and groom, their ages and residences, marriage date, license date, marriage county, and film number.

This collection of West Virginia marriage records covers 1785-1971. (Pre-1863 records are from when those counties were part of Virginia.) Information varies by record, but could include not only information about the bride and groom, but also previous spouses and parents' names.

This database is an index to marriages in Minnesota from 1958-2001 (excluding 1996). The database is a compilation of two indexes obtained from the Minnesota Center for Health Statistics (CHS) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).

Information available in this database includes:

Names of bride and groom

Ages of bride and groom

Birth dates of bride and groom*

Marriage date

Marriage place

State file number**

*Exact dates of birth are only available in data from the MDH. Records from the Minnesota CHS may have estimated birth years calculated from the year of marriage and age of bride or groom.

**Only available for data from the MDH.

Data from the Minnesota CHS covers the years 1958-1995 (and may include a few earlier and later marriages). Data from the MDH covers the years 1997-2001. Records from the Minnesota CHS also include images of the index.

I Found An Ancestor In This Database….What Now?

Marriage records are great sources for genealogists because they document an individual in a particular place and time as well as provide details about that person's marriage and establish important family relationships.

It is important that you use the information found in this database to locate your ancestor in the records that this index references. Usually more information is available in the records themselves than is found in an index. For example, marriage records sometimes provide the birth dates and places of the bride and groom, their parents' names, their addresses, and witnesses' names, in addition to the information listed in this index.

Finding the Original Marriage Record:

Copies of marriage certificates are issued through the county where the marriage occurred. Contact the registrar office of the appropriate county for more information on ordering copies.

Data in this collection came from the Alabama Center for Health Statistics, Jordan R. Dodd and Hunting For Bears. Information includes name of the bride and groom, date of the marriage, and county of marriage. NOTE: not all counties are included in all years.

This database is an index to about 2.3 million individuals who were married in the state of Kentucky between 1973 and 1999. Information that may be found in this database for each entry includes groom's name, groom's age, groom's county of residence, groom's marital status (never married; last marriage ended by death; last marriage ended by divorce; or last marriage ended by annulment), groom's race, bride's name, bride's age, bride's county of residence, bride's race, marriage date, marriage county, county of marriage license, marriage certificate number, volume number, and volume year. Copies of marriage records are available through the Vital Records branch of the Kentucky Department of Health. They maintain marriage records beginning in June 1958. For information about how to obtain a copy, please visit their website.

Find records now for free.

Start your free trial today to learn more about your ancestors using our powerful and intuitive search. Cancel any time, no strings attached.